Several times throughtout the book, Jacob is standing at a window, is looking out a window, or is walking towards/away from a window i.e. he is in close proximity to a window. A couple examples: (1) "Jacob came out from the dark place by the window where he had hovered" (45). (2) Jacob's in his room and he "went to the window" (48). (3) Jacob gets up, "[parts] the curtains" and looks outside (85). What is the point of this??? Bro Tom mentioned how melancholy/depressing it seems when a person is staring out of a window, even if they aren't sad at all. Is Jacob sad in any way? At some times, I think that he is discontent with his life, especially his love life, which never seems to bring him lasting happiness. I think that Jacob can also be a little depressed when he is stuck in the same old places doing the same old things over and over, so that's one of the reasons why he likes to travel. What do you think? Is Jacob a sad person? If not , what do you make of the window thing? - lma-c Jan 29, 2008
I think the connection between windows and Jacob is that windows represent life in this novel. I could be wrong, but everytime one looks out of a window they see some sort of movements whether it be people or nature. Jacob is looking for life different than his own. I don't think he is a sad person, but he feels that something is missing. I do think that he travels to get away from English society and everyday life. Jacob seems lost and distant from his society. Throughout the book, I felt as if everything was happening around Jacob as opposed to Jacob. - KSm-c Jan 30, 2008
To me, Jacob looking out the window means that he is always looking for something else, or even looking for something more. The house or room that his is in is limiting him. Jacob looks out the window for what he is longing for and what he desires. So to answer Lma's question, no I don't necessarily think that Jacob is sad, I just think that he is not completely content with his life. Whenever Jacob is in a social situation or talking to someone, he seems disinterested, as if there were a different place he wishes to be. Did anyone else get that feeling from him? I would definitely agree with Lma that Jacob seems to be depressed when he is bored. He desires adventure, or something different from the everyday ordinary.- Kho-c Jan 30, 2008
As much as that play confused me, I cannot help but think of Endgame. In Endgame, they were all stuck in their house away from the outside world.... Anyways, I am with KHo in that Jacob is not happy and he is looking out the window in search of something more. The glass of the window is the barrier from his room, or whatever place he is in, to the rest of the world. But Jacob's point of view at the window is also very important. Is he looking in or out? Most the time he is looking out, which seems like some sort of imprisonment: looking out desperately from the confines of the trap. But why would he feel like a prisoner? If ever he is looking through a window into a house or a building I think it would have a different meaning. If he were ever looking in, it would be like he knows what he wants, but he doesn't know how to get it because. He has the desire, but there is something in the way. Does Jacob ever think that way?- kkr-c Jan 30, 2008
I also see the fact that Jacob is always looking out the window as him saying that is looking for something else. I think that this is a reason that he seems to always be traveling and moving around. The windows help him find what he is looking for at a certain point of his life and then he is able to go for it. I like Kho also got the impression that Jacob always wants to be somewhere else which is why he is always moving and always seems to be with a different woman. He always has to be on the move and that is made evident when we constantly find him in new destinations. - kfr-c Jan 31, 2008
The title Jacob's Room gives the impression of some kind of confinement--It reminds me of a child looking out of his/her window and watching all the other kids play outside. The child yearns to be with them, but is not allowed or something is holding him/her back. But no one has said yet that the image of a window can also be a sign of hope. At least it is not a room with no windows. It's like that saying, "When God closes a door, somewhere he opens a window. I get the feeling that Jacob is learning when he is looking out the window. The window is an opportunity. I don't think Jacob knows what he wants, and therefore is reluctant to take a risk. But he needs to seize that opportunity. Jacob seems to be a man filled with ideas. He just needs to go after what he's searching for. But I also get the impression that Jacob will never be completely satisfied. He always seems to be wanting something more. - KGa-c Jan 31, 2008
Jacob is never really content with his current situation in the novel: much of his dialogue is dedicated to him complaining or expressing disdain about something regarding his current position. This isn't necessarily a bad thing: it is just an example of how it is human nature to want more and better for oneself. The motif of the window reflects this desire of Jacob. Like is has been said, the Jacob looking out the window represents him looking for something more in the world. Woolf is making a comment on our civilization as a whole: collectively, we all are Jacob looking out of a window. No matter what our current status in society is, we always push ourselves to continue to succeed and rise to better things. It is human nature to do so, and Woolf is symbolizing this desire in the recurring windows to the world. - dsU-c Jan 31, 2008
I'm going to take a simpler stance on this. When people stand at windows, they are observing. This reminds me of that statement Woolf made somewhere in the book (left mine at school so I can't find the page of the book) that "in short, the reader is choked with observations." Perhaps that's what Jacob is doing. He is at one point seeing all the people around him, considering himself to be master and commander of everyone and everything. But then, through the window, he sees that this is not true, that not everything is perfect, namely, his love life.- JHe-c Jan 31, 2008
The recurring window theme tells me that Jacob is dissatasfied with his life, like others have mentioned. To me, looking out the window means that Jacob isn't interested in what is going on inside--his life doesn't interest him. But he is still standing inside, so he can't get out to do whatever it is that is catching his interest outside of his life at the moment. However, I think that this ties in with Woolf's theme of missed opportunities: "Wherever I seat myself, I die in exile." We have to choose a life, a house to place ourselves in, but in doing so we are giving up the limitless opportunities that the outdoors holds. I think about it this way: When you are walking down the street, you, feasibly, could choose to enter any building you choose. But once you choose a house, you can't switch without completely backing out. So Jacob made a choice, but he realizes in looking out the windows what he is missing out on. Perhaps then, it is not surprising that Jacob is somewhat unsatasfying. Woolf seems to be proposing that we all must be unsatasfied to some extent because of the things we have given up. - lsi-c Jan 31, 2008
Just like every single one of us, Jacob is limited by his perspectives and can only look out a "window" to ponder the possibilities of just what is going on inside the heads of others. Still, he cannot and we cannot ever fully step in another person's shoes because of the limits caused by our own perspectives and perceptions of things and thus we look out the window and wonder. I'm sorry if this seems confusing, but what I'm getting at is that Jacob is a metaphor for the average person in that he is never fully content with his life and is always looking out the window and wondering about possibilities and what could happen if he did this or that; just like any human he is inquisitive and constantly dreams. Regretably though, he is held back just like all of us because his life exists in his "room" and he can never truly step into another person's "room." This all goes back to "that" paragraph on page 52 which talks about the people in the theater being in boxes and how all of human society acts like that. It is true that we are all limited by our perspectives except of course for the omnipotent narrator who can jump into the minds of any character, but that is only because the universe of the novel is created by Woolf.- KRi-c Jan 31, 2008
When I think of looking out of a window, I don’t think of sadness, but perspective. How many times do you look out of a window just to see whatever there is to see on the other side of the glass? Is the symbolism of the window related to how Jacob views the world and what is occurring around him? Or could it be as simple as it’s the most common element to a room, besides walls and a door that is. Another thought: do windows ever make you feel small? When you look out of a window, do you ever feel like the world outside of wherever you’re looking out from is so huge and vast compared to you in your little room sitting by the widow? Or you look out and see a beautiful landscape that seems to never end? It’s like windows represent the whole novel, Jacob, the other characters, all of the mixed up events of the story, somehow all tied together. We look out of windows all the time to see what the weather is like, who is at the door, or to check if traffic is coming, or to see where we are on a road trip. All of these times, one element remains the same throughout, to find the answer to a question, or at least to find some clarity. Isn’t it true that regardless of when in the story Jacob looks out the window he is in a different place at a different time? Jacob just might want to find some meaning in his life, to check out how far he’s traveled down the road.- AGe-c Feb 1, 2008
I kind of think that the use of all the windows is a image of Jacob being an observer in life. He is so focused on the past and the classics that he seems to sit on the sidelines for the present, which is a big issue in this book for Woolf. Jacob must be seperated from the rest of the world by something, like a pane of glass, only of course it would be some type of metaphorical glass. He seems so reserved and content with just doing nothing. For those of you who have Fr. Bob or have read The Stranger by Albert Camus, he reminds me of Mersault to be honest, especially the scene when Mersault is looking down on all the people living life and just being a bystander. That's the connection I made when this was mentioned in class. - mka-c Feb 1, 2008
When i think of window i think light and dark. I don't know why, but i think in this case it could work. We decided in another forum that darkness represents death. Well when Jacob is sitting by the window in darkness i think it is symbolizing the darkness he si stuck in Maybe once he looks out the window he sees life and it is no longer dark. I think of a window as like a tunnel to the light. Maybe when he is in his room he sometimes wants to be out of it and then uses the window as an escape. When i look out my window i imagine myself outside; jacob could be doing the same. I may read too far in to some things sometimes, but i just have this feeling like Jacob uses the window as an escape and he uses it to place him in a different world outside of his room.- JJa-c Feb 1, 2008JJa-c
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I think the connection between windows and Jacob is that windows represent life in this novel. I could be wrong, but everytime one looks out of a window they see some sort of movements whether it be people or nature. Jacob is looking for life different than his own. I don't think he is a sad person, but he feels that something is missing. I do think that he travels to get away from English society and everyday life. Jacob seems lost and distant from his society. Throughout the book, I felt as if everything was happening around Jacob as opposed to Jacob. -
To me, Jacob looking out the window means that he is always looking for something else, or even looking for something more. The house or room that his is in is limiting him. Jacob looks out the window for what he is longing for and what he desires. So to answer Lma's question, no I don't necessarily think that Jacob is sad, I just think that he is not completely content with his life. Whenever Jacob is in a social situation or talking to someone, he seems disinterested, as if there were a different place he wishes to be. Did anyone else get that feeling from him? I would definitely agree with Lma that Jacob seems to be depressed when he is bored. He desires adventure, or something different from the everyday ordinary.-
As much as that play confused me, I cannot help but think of Endgame. In Endgame, they were all stuck in their house away from the outside world.... Anyways, I am with KHo in that Jacob is not happy and he is looking out the window in search of something more. The glass of the window is the barrier from his room, or whatever place he is in, to the rest of the world. But Jacob's point of view at the window is also very important. Is he looking in or out? Most the time he is looking out, which seems like some sort of imprisonment: looking out desperately from the confines of the trap. But why would he feel like a prisoner? If ever he is looking through a window into a house or a building I think it would have a different meaning. If he were ever looking in, it would be like he knows what he wants, but he doesn't know how to get it because. He has the desire, but there is something in the way. Does Jacob ever think that way?-
I also see the fact that Jacob is always looking out the window as him saying that is looking for something else. I think that this is a reason that he seems to always be traveling and moving around. The windows help him find what he is looking for at a certain point of his life and then he is able to go for it. I like Kho also got the impression that Jacob always wants to be somewhere else which is why he is always moving and always seems to be with a different woman. He always has to be on the move and that is made evident when we constantly find him in new destinations. -
The title Jacob's Room gives the impression of some kind of confinement--It reminds me of a child looking out of his/her window and watching all the other kids play outside. The child yearns to be with them, but is not allowed or something is holding him/her back. But no one has said yet that the image of a window can also be a sign of hope. At least it is not a room with no windows. It's like that saying, "When God closes a door, somewhere he opens a window. I get the feeling that Jacob is learning when he is looking out the window. The window is an opportunity. I don't think Jacob knows what he wants, and therefore is reluctant to take a risk. But he needs to seize that opportunity. Jacob seems to be a man filled with ideas. He just needs to go after what he's searching for. But I also get the impression that Jacob will never be completely satisfied. He always seems to be wanting something more.
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Jacob is never really content with his current situation in the novel: much of his dialogue is dedicated to him complaining or expressing disdain about something regarding his current position. This isn't necessarily a bad thing: it is just an example of how it is human nature to want more and better for oneself. The motif of the window reflects this desire of Jacob. Like is has been said, the Jacob looking out the window represents him looking for something more in the world. Woolf is making a comment on our civilization as a whole: collectively, we all are Jacob looking out of a window. No matter what our current status in society is, we always push ourselves to continue to succeed and rise to better things. It is human nature to do so, and Woolf is symbolizing this desire in the recurring windows to the world.
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I'm going to take a simpler stance on this. When people stand at windows, they are observing. This reminds me of that statement Woolf made somewhere in the book (left mine at school so I can't find the page of the book) that "in short, the reader is choked with observations." Perhaps that's what Jacob is doing. He is at one point seeing all the people around him, considering himself to be master and commander of everyone and everything. But then, through the window, he sees that this is not true, that not everything is perfect, namely, his love life.-
The recurring window theme tells me that Jacob is dissatasfied with his life, like others have mentioned. To me, looking out the window means that Jacob isn't interested in what is going on inside--his life doesn't interest him. But he is still standing inside, so he can't get out to do whatever it is that is catching his interest outside of his life at the moment. However, I think that this ties in with Woolf's theme of missed opportunities: "Wherever I seat myself, I die in exile." We have to choose a life, a house to place ourselves in, but in doing so we are giving up the limitless opportunities that the outdoors holds. I think about it this way: When you are walking down the street, you, feasibly, could choose to enter any building you choose. But once you choose a house, you can't switch without completely backing out. So Jacob made a choice, but he realizes in looking out the windows what he is missing out on. Perhaps then, it is not surprising that Jacob is somewhat unsatasfying. Woolf seems to be proposing that we all must be unsatasfied to some extent because of the things we have given up. -
Just like every single one of us, Jacob is limited by his perspectives and can only look out a "window" to ponder the possibilities of just what is going on inside the heads of others. Still, he cannot and we cannot ever fully step in another person's shoes because of the limits caused by our own perspectives and perceptions of things and thus we look out the window and wonder. I'm sorry if this seems confusing, but what I'm getting at is that Jacob is a metaphor for the average person in that he is never fully content with his life and is always looking out the window and wondering about possibilities and what could happen if he did this or that; just like any human he is inquisitive and constantly dreams. Regretably though, he is held back just like all of us because his life exists in his "room" and he can never truly step into another person's "room." This all goes back to "that" paragraph on page 52 which talks about the people in the theater being in boxes and how all of human society acts like that. It is true that we are all limited by our perspectives except of course for the omnipotent narrator who can jump into the minds of any character, but that is only because the universe of the novel is created by Woolf.-
When I think of looking out of a window, I don’t think of sadness, but perspective. How many times do you look out of a window just to see whatever there is to see on the other side of the glass? Is the symbolism of the window related to how Jacob views the world and what is occurring around him? Or could it be as simple as it’s the most common element to a room, besides walls and a door that is. Another thought: do windows ever make you feel small? When you look out of a window, do you ever feel like the world outside of wherever you’re looking out from is so huge and vast compared to you in your little room sitting by the widow? Or you look out and see a beautiful landscape that seems to never end? It’s like windows represent the whole novel, Jacob, the other characters, all of the mixed up events of the story, somehow all tied together. We look out of windows all the time to see what the weather is like, who is at the door, or to check if traffic is coming, or to see where we are on a road trip. All of these times, one element remains the same throughout, to find the answer to a question, or at least to find some clarity. Isn’t it true that regardless of when in the story Jacob looks out the window he is in a different place at a different time? Jacob just might want to find some meaning in his life, to check out how far he’s traveled down the road.-
I kind of think that the use of all the windows is a image of Jacob being an observer in life. He is so focused on the past and the classics that he seems to sit on the sidelines for the present, which is a big issue in this book for Woolf. Jacob must be seperated from the rest of the world by something, like a pane of glass, only of course it would be some type of metaphorical glass. He seems so reserved and content with just doing nothing. For those of you who have Fr. Bob or have read The Stranger by Albert Camus, he reminds me of Mersault to be honest, especially the scene when Mersault is looking down on all the people living life and just being a bystander. That's the connection I made when this was mentioned in class. -
When i think of window i think light and dark. I don't know why, but i think in this case it could work. We decided in another forum that darkness represents death. Well when Jacob is sitting by the window in darkness i think it is symbolizing the darkness he si stuck in Maybe once he looks out the window he sees life and it is no longer dark. I think of a window as like a tunnel to the light. Maybe when he is in his room he sometimes wants to be out of it and then uses the window as an escape. When i look out my window i imagine myself outside; jacob could be doing the same. I may read too far in to some things sometimes, but i just have this feeling like Jacob uses the window as an escape and he uses it to place him in a different world outside of his room.-